Ex-footballer Merson in court

08 February 2012 02:00 PM

Ex-Arsenal footballer Paul Merson was due to appear in court today charged with drink-driving after he was injured in a motorway crash.

The former Arsenal and Aston Villa star, of Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, is alleged to have committed the offence on the M40 near Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, in the early hours of October 12 last year.

Merson (43), who works as a pundit for Sky Sports, was charged with a single count of driving with excess alcohol and will appear at Leamington Spa Magistrates' Court.

More fish in the rivers than seas

Contrary to popular belief, there are not a lot of fish in the sea, say researchers.

Despite covering 70pc of the Earth's surface, marine environments contain only 20pc of all its species.

In the new study, scientists made the surprising discovery that freshwater rivers and lakes contain more fish species than salty oceans. Yet freshwater environments occupy only 2pc of the Earth's surface. It could be evidence of life re-inventing itself after mass extinctions, experts say.

21 dead after factory blast

A senior rescue official says the death toll from a factory that collapsed in an eastern Pakistani city and trapped dozens has risen to 21.

Rizwan Naseer said that rescue workers saved a young man, Ghulam Abbas, who had spent 47 hours trapped under the rubble of the factory in the city of Lahore.

Abbas says there were still women and children alive under the pile of debris who needed immediate help.

The factory collapsed on Monday after several gas cylinders inside exploded.

Astronaut Voss dies aged 55

Nasa astronaut Janice Voss, who first worked for the space agency as a teenager and flew five shuttle missions in seven years, has died. She was 55.

The agency said in a statement that Ms Voss died after a battle with cancer.

Ms Voss started with Nasa while attending Purdue University in 1973. She later worked as an instructor before being selected as an astronaut in 1990.